My dad turned 60 this year. Since we all had come home to Naperville for mother's day, we decided to meet up in Colorado. Tori had just started her new job with Northwestern and on top of that Tori & Braden were moving into their city apartment, so they weren't able to join us. Trevor got off early on Thursday & we got on the road by 3 PM. Laura & Christen were flying in from Denver and we both arrive within a minute of each other. Will had been out cold in the car, but woke when grandpa came to get him out of the car. Clearly no one missed William.
If it isn't obvious by the pictures my dad loves being in charge of Will and just having his little buddy by his side.
We took the morning slow and got settled in and then they tried to do the mountain bikes in the afternoon but they closed at 6 PM and we didn't have enough time to take full advantage of the bike rentals. So I organized a hike for everyone to do. Laura wasn't feeling well so she hung back with me and my mom while all the boys, Will included, took off on the hike. Christian and Will had quite the funny relationship warming up to each other.
After every dinner we had the excuse to get a birthday treat. My dad's real birthday wasn't until the following weekend, but we took advantage of every opportunity to celebrate.
Vail Village was so cute and dainty we felt like we were back in Europe, only the sky was overcast and covered in smoke from recent fires near the area.
It's not very often I remember to put Will's sandals on and rarely do they stay on. So I had to throw in a little photo shoot. Plus he was being such a little turkey with those big grins.
Since my accident, I've learned that I have to mentally and emotionally prepare myself for trips and outings now. I was prepared for the hike because I planned it and knowing ahead of time that I couldn't go helped me be okay with not going. I also knew that everyone would be mountain biking the slopes behind our hotel at some point. We'd called ahead of time to ask about accessible mountain bikes, but no one was aware of any. So I had prepared to hang back with my mom and just ride the gondola and look around at the top.
Last minute while we were checking out my sisters bike and finishing waivers, I just asked again if they had any accessible bikes. The employee brought me back and showed me the handcycle. They had a participant take it out just the other day. I had fully prepared myself mentally, emotionally and even physically (I was wearing a skirt). I'd planned to sit back and watch this adventure, but when I saw the bike I was all in!
Trevor ran back to the room and grabbed me some clothes and we hit the mountain! My mom rode the gondola up with us and stayed with Will so I was able to ride down with everyone.
It was so fun to be able to get out and adventure with my family, but especially with Trevor. So often he hangs back or we aren't able to go on as many adventures as we'd like to together. It felt so special to be out there together.
Will is such a morning person and I had to capture how much he loves the little air valve on my wheelchair.
Before we left on our river rafting adventures we spent some time down by the pool. I quickly discovered with the buoyancy of water I am able to stand/squat in the water and hold Will on my hip and play with him. It was just so magical and fun to be able to play with him in the water & we both quickly fell in love with the pool.
These are some of my favorite pictures. Oh how I love this boy with my whole heart.
Our last night in Vail they sky cleared up and was so beautiful. I'm always glad when my sister is around because she captures pictures of me in my chair, which I typically try and hop out of for pictures.
Now that we both have husbands we don't take nearly enough photos together. Seeing her luscious long hair makes me want my long hair back!
We had just been out river rafting before dinner so we all cleaned up quick and didn't really get ready. But I'm glad we snapped one more with the birthday boy. Boo bear was asleep otherwise we would have tried to get another group photo.
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Tuesday was departure day, but we packed up our things and spent the morning by the pool.
Will loved splashing and kicking in the water once he figured it all out.
Uncle Christian and Will were finally getting along & we had to put up the mini photo shoot because I just love him on these beach chairs.
Family fun in the sun. It was the absolute best playing in the pool together and it was the best discovery of the trip, seeing how I could walk, hold and play with Will in the water.
This kid loved splashing to the point I could keep my eyes open, but oh the fun we had!
Grandma & Will had lots of time together on this trip because we did a couple outings that he couldn't go on - ATV's, white water rafting and mountain bikes. After our last outing I was looking at pictures of Will on my phone because I missed hime and wasn't used to being apart for 3+ hours a day.
Grandpa & Will have such a special bond together and I'm so glad we were able to meet up for an early celebration. We were talking with my dad & how he really has reached a point in his life where he is able to reflect back on a lot of his success - both in the business world, but more importantly in the home & with his family. All of his kids are grown and married and I'd say we all turned out pretty dang good. My dad always made us kids the priority & coached our soccer teams for over 10 years. Over a decade of early morning commutes into the city to work so he could not only provide, but be home to coach soccer practice. He sacrificed his Saturday's for years to coach our soccer games & when I started running he never missed a high school cross country meet. He always supported me in whatever activity I was pursuing. My dad has given us every opportunity to succeed in life. Even after my accident he still continued to help support me from my hospital days to going back to school. He supported me as I found cross country sit skiing and even flew out with me to Nationals. When I started dating Trevor, my dad would light up and just encouraged me to not be afraid of the future. I'm so grateful for the opportunities he has worked so hard to provide and the endless support and encouragement to help me accomplish my goals. I definitely would not be where I am today or who I am today without him.
HAPPY 60th BIRTHDAY DAD!
